Bigger checkpoint speeds airport travelers

Passengers go through the new security checkpoint in the under construction Terminal 2 West at Lindbergh Field. All 12 lanes won't be fully operational until the terminal opens later this year.
— Howard Lipin

Passengers go through the new security checkpoint in the under construction Terminal 2 West at Lindbergh Field. All 12 lanes won't be fully operational until the terminal opens later this year.
— Howard Lipin

Travelers at the San Diego International Airport found an unusual spot for speediness Friday afternoon — the new and roomy security checkpoint in Terminal 2.

While jackhammers jolted outside the terminal, which is undergoing expansion, passengers moved at a quick clip through the 29,000-square-foot checkpoint, which can have a maximum of 12 inspection lanes operating.

The new setup opened on Wednesday and has already won praise from fliers. It’s just west of the old checkpoint, which was 5,000 square feet, had six lanes, and often had long lines of passengers waiting for inspection. The old site is now closed.

Stopping briefly at the new checkpoint, Katie Croskey of San Marcos said the revamped setup “looks great.”

“It’s going to be twice as fast, I suspect,” said Croskey, adding that she uses the airport about once a week.

“It looks pretty convenient for a Friday afternoon,” said Joe D’Alessandris of San Diego. He was headed to Atlanta to visit family for Easter.

Travelers in line at noon Friday waited for about three to four minutes, some quite a bit less.

When the new facility debuted Wednesday, wait times averaged between seven and 10 minutes — down from a 12-minute average in the old queues, said Katie Jones, a spokeswoman for the airport.

Jones added that the airport won’t need all 12 new lanes right away. They will be more valuable once Terminal 2 adds 10 new plane gates as part of the $1 billion expansion set to wrap up this summer.

Airport officials haven’t pinpointed the cost of the new checkpoint because it’s lumped together with the price tag for the entire project, Jones said. Airport user fees are paying for all the work.

Terminal 2 handles the airport’s international flights and many domestic flights. Its expansion, known as the Green Build, includes a dual-level roadway to ease curbside traffic; curbside kiosks that will allow passengers to print boarding passes, check baggage and view gate information; and expanded dining and shopping options.

A daily average of 10,200 travelers pass through security lines in Terminal 2, while an average of 14,700 people pass through security in Terminal 1, according to an airport spokesman.

There are short-term plans to expand the queuing area at the busiest security checkpoint in Terminal 1, which is home to the popular Southwest Airlines. That hub will also get new dining options, airport officials have said.

Altogether, 17 million passengers traveled through the airport in 2011, the latest year for available data. That figure is projected to increase to as much as 33 million by 2030, according to airport officials.

Like many airports, San Diego International’s passenger counts dipped during the Great Recession. Officials hope projects such as the expanded checkpoint — the first piece of Green Build to be open to the public — will attract more visitors.

On average, 550 planes arrive and depart from the airport every day, officials said last year. The expansion will allow for about 50 more flights per day, they said.

If frequent flier Kelly Keefe is a barometer of travelers’ impressions, the airport took a big leap with its new Terminal 2 checkpoint. She stopped to chat on her way to visit her daughter in Massachusetts.

“It looks much more like an international airport, rather than a rinky dink,” Keefe said.